# Enjoying my new Falcon Extra pipe:



## remington (Jan 9, 2013)

Hello everybody, I have to say I am really enjoying my new Falcon Extra. I upgraded from my drug store starter pipes to the Falcon after some research. For me this is a huge improvement in the flavor of my old pipes. I am embarrassed to admit I was not aware that pipes needed to be cleaned after each smoke and as you would expect, this resulted in the pipes going sour and ending up as dust collectors on a shelf. As I'm typing this I realize how stupid I was for not knowing or wondering what pipe cleaners were for. Oh well, live and learn - or smoke and learn.

So, pretty much any new pipe was going to taste instantly better after the taste of the old ones. Anyway, I'm really psyched about the new flavors I'm getting out of my Sutliff Molto Dolce and Dunhill Flake compared to the old pipes. I tried cleaning up the old pipes and having a few smokes before my Falcon came in to compare - and there is no comparison. I'm just as excited about the ease of clean up with my Falcon. I use the dry rings and am really amazed at how well the humidrome captures the moisture and provides a nice dry cool smoke.

I've recently experimented with cutting a Dunhill Flake the long way down the middle, sprinkling Molto Dolce on top and then rolling it and stuffing it into my Algiers bowl. It added a little body to the Molto Dolce except I was hoping for a little more Molto Dolce flavor in the experiment. Next - I'm going to try mixing some cubes of the flake into the Molto Dolce and see how that goes. I like the Molto Dolce but as a new cigar smoker (longer than I've been a pipe smoker) I find myself wanting a little more substance to the flavor if that makes any sense?

I opted for the Falcon Extra vs the non-anodized stem because I found the bare aluminum to be a tad unsightly. I also have a Falcon Hunter bent stem with a Hunter Meerschaum Apple Bowl on the way. I liked the way the black stem looked with the lighter colored Hunter bowls. I'll share pics and impressions when I get it and have a few bowls of tobacco.

Any other "Falconeers" out there? Pics?


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## Thirston (Feb 2, 2011)

Nice Falcon and welcome. I recently got my first after many many briars and meers and I love it. No resting between smokes! 

There is definitely a learning curve to pipes. I came from the cigar side and soon after I crossed over I had the bright idea that I did not need to stick a pipe cleaner through the pipe after every smoke (I puffed while away from my house often) which means I had less to carry (cool.) Big mistake. Plus, before I became a piper I never gave pipe cleaners much thought, although they were always around my house growing up and used for odd household chores, and I actually thought they were something a plumber used in his trade. Duh. You'll learn a bunch if you hang around here and other pipe forums.


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## remington (Jan 9, 2013)

Thanks Thirston. I have been learning a lot from this forum in particular. Just got my Hunter in (will post pics), first smoke wasn't bad but near as good as the way my extra smokes with about 5-6 bowls smoked. I have no doubt the meer lined bowl will catch up. I do love the bent stem and find it to be very ergonomic. cheers!


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## remington (Jan 9, 2013)

Just got my Falcon Hunter w/ Meer lined Apple Bowl. First smoke not bad but not nearly the flavor provided by my newly seasoned Algiers briar bowl with my Falcon Extra Stem. I do anticipate the meer Apple bowl will catch up however. I'm getting a lot more cream in my flavor Algiers bowl with the Sutliff Molto Dolce. Will update once I have a few more bowls of tobacco in the hunter setup..


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## RBMoon (May 21, 2011)

It seems to take 4-5 bowls full before the Falcons start to taste right.


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## freestoke (Feb 13, 2011)

Does that stem come out of the metal shank? I have a Falcon with a stem that does and it's that color metal shank, so I was just wondering if the Extra was like the International -- I think mine's an International, but I'm not sure. Has a larger bowl than my regular Falcon. 

BTW, those pipes that have soured can be salvaged, almost certainly. Get some stout booze or Everclear, fill the bowl half full and bubble it around in the bowl/stem, making sure you don't get any in your mouth, dump, run a few pipe cleaners through it, repeat. Might get some bristle cleaners to clean up the stem a little with the booze before the "rinse". After a couple of bubble-bowls, run pipe cleaners dipped in booze or Everclear through the stem until they come out clean. Let it dry for an hour or two and you should be good to go. :tu Actually, you probably don't even need the bubble bath, just alcohol soaked cleaners, maybe a few bristle cleaners with the booze or Everclear to do some early scouring.


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## JayCam (Jan 24, 2013)

So I just learned that I need to start cleaning my pipe lol thanks guys...

Stem only or stem and bowl? (How do you actually clean a pipe bowl?)

Jay


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## freestoke (Feb 13, 2011)

JayCam said:


> So I just learned that I need to start cleaning my pipe lol thanks guys...
> *
> How do you actually clean a pipe bowl?*
> 
> Jay


With a salt/alcohol treatment, but that's not generally necessary. Only the nastiest estate buys need that much work. Right now, I'm smoking a 40 year old Bari Dana that's never had the bowl cleaned, other than an occasional scraping to remove excess cake. As a matter of fact, I have never done it to any of my pipes that I bought new, in over 50 years of pipe smoking. I run some alcohol soaked PCs through from time to time (it varies), and at least one PC per smoke. When I use alcohol, I use bristle cleaners to start with, to reopen the draught hole, then finish up with regulars.


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## RBMoon (May 21, 2011)

The stem doesn't come out of the metal shank. It's a press fit and not intended to be removed.


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